Oratory Prep School

Rounders

Rounders is played in the Summer term. The school organises fixtures for children at Year 2 against local schools all the way through to Under 13. We look to promote an understanding of the game and how it is to be played and also encourage children of all abilities to gain success with mastering the basic striking, throwing, bowling and catching skills. The children will look to develop in all the areas of rounders to become competent in fielding, batting and bowling skills.

Rugby

Rugby is played in the autumn term and is enjoyed by all boys. Our aim is to involve every boy in competitive matches for the school. We have two coaches per year group and children get the chance to train together for the beginning of each session before splitting into smaller groups for more specific exercises. As well as a large number of competitive matches against other schools we have competitive house matches where the boys get to pit their skills against their colleagues. The Oratory Prep School also hosts an Under 10 tournament annually where other local schools are invited. We play rugby VIIs in the Lent term and our 1st VII and Colts VII are always entered for tournaments and have been successful in recent years. We believe that rugby is a very important part of school life and makes children understand the importance of being part of a team.

Football

Football is the main sport played in the Lent term and as with rugby, every boy is expected to represent the school in competitive matches. Just last term, we were able to field 22 different teams and this involved every boy in the school representing the school on a single day. We are lucky enough to have large and beautiful grounds which enable us to field so many competitive teams. The pre-prep has started training the boys from year one as part of their PE curriculum so when they join the prep schools they have a good understanding of the game. Each team has a number of matches throughout the season and last season the U10A, U9E and Colts B IX were unbeaten. We also co-host a tournament with Southampton FC in the second half of term for the Year 6 boys and hold an Under 8 and Under 9 tournament on the final weekend of the term. As is the case with rugby we believe that football builds confidence in boys and really helps them feel part of a team and indeed the children feel proud to represent their school.

Hockey

The girls play hockey during the Autumn term at the Oratory Prep School. From year 2 upwards, the girls have focused training sessions each week, helping them to develop basic stick skills such as passing, stopping and dribbling the ball. They are introduced to the basic rules of the game and enjoy putting their skills into practice in friendly match play within lessons.

As they move through the school, the girls’ stick skills are honed to perfection and they begin to become aware of the tactical side of the game. We currently have some fantastic players at the school, and our prestigious golden stick award, awarded at the end of the Autumn term, is always a closely fought competition.

We use both grass pitches and Astroturf for Hockey training. Our juniors have two special grass pitches on the lawns by the front driveway, whilst our seniors have a full sized pitch in one of the rear fields, which does wonders for improving the girls’ fitness!

There are 9 staff involved in coaching Hockey. These staff oversee 10 teams, ranging from U7 right up to U13. All teams, no matter how junior, have matches against opposing schools. We believe that the experience of representing your school in sports teams is an important part of school life and strive to include all of the girls whenever possible. Our fixture list is challenging and brings the best out of our girls as they experience great success in this sport.

Netball

Netball is played in the Lent term at the Oratory Prep school. All of the girls from U7 right through to U13 have the opportunity to play for their school in weekly matches and tournaments throughout the term. Our strong relations with other prep schools in the local area mean that we are frequently invited to tournaments which enable the girls to encounter a range of abilities and experience. Our juniors play a mixture of High Five and 7 a side Netball matches for their fixtures. This means that they are able to try out a range of different positions at a young age before finding their niche in the game. The girls enjoyed great success in their matches against local teams and the whole experience was extremely rewarding for both the girls involved and the staff that accompanied them.

Cricket

Cricket is played by every boy in the school and the key skills are taught from an early age (Year1) in the form of kwik cricket. Boys start to play with a hard ball in Year 4 and the skills keep being fine-tuned and by the time the children reach Year 6 we regularly have boys entered for county trials. Our senior boys have just come back from a cricket tour to South Africa this year and we also play a number of South African teams during the season. As with all sports at The Oratory Prep School every boy is expected to play for the school and the facilities we have are excellent. The school invested in some new cricket nets three years ago and these are used in all training sessions. We also have indoor nets in the sports hall with a bowling machine and this facility is offered as an activity. As with all sports at The Oratory Prep School cricket is played to build confidence, make friends and most importantly, to be enjoyed.

Swimming

For myself, losing is not coming second. It's getting out of the water knowing you could have done better. For myself, I have won every race I've been in

Ian Thorpe

Our fantastic indoor swimming pool complex was opened at the beginning of 2009. In this complex we are very fortunate to have two pools – a ten metre by twenty five metre pool and a learner pool, which cater for all needs and abilities. This has ensured rapid development in the swimming skills of all children from pre-prep right through to year 8. All children, from our youngest in the pre prep, have the opportunity to attend swimming lessons during the school day. Special squad training sessions are held before and after school. We compete with other local schools in galas which take place throughout the year. Since 2007 we have achieved success every year with swimmers qualifying for the National IAPS swimming championship. We also hold A and B galas throughout all three terms hosting state and independent schools.

Our aims for swimming are enjoyment, fitness, life skill and survival training as well as swimming competitively.